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The Boy from Tomorrow by Camille DeAngelis
Expected Release: May 8th 2018
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Amberjack Publishing
Source: NetGalley

The Boy From Tomorrow Synopsis:

Josie and Alec both live at 444 Sparrow Street. They sleep in the same room, but they’ve never laid eyes on each other. They are twelve years old but a hundred years apart. The children meet through a handpainted spirit board—Josie in 1915, Alec in 2015—and form a friendship across the century that separates them. But a chain of events leave Josie and her little sister Cass trapped in the house and afraid for their safety, and Alec must find out what’s going to happen to them. Can he help them change their future when it’s already past? The Boy from Tomorrow is a tribute to classic English fantasy novels like Tom’s Midnight Garden and A Traveller in Time. Through their impossible friendship, Alec and Josie learn that life can offer only what they ask of it.

Review:

A BIG Thank You to NetGalley and Amberjack Publishing for providing me an advanced electronic copy of “The Boy from Tomorrow” by Camille DeAngelis.

I loved reading this book and wished it had continued! The story is so unique and fresh and unlike anything I have read till now. The idea of two people connecting with one another from different eras is told in such a wonderful way! Right from the get go, we see how Josie and Alec start building a friendship through the talking board. Both of them are going through family problems and lack the love the wish from their parents. The story progresses on how they help each other even though they live in different time spans. Another aspect I enjoyed was all the book references of classic literature that the author seeps in the story line. She gives us an interesting snippet of a few, which are now added to my reading list.

There were a few parts of the story that I didn’t quite understand. For example, I didn’t get how Alec and Josie were able to communicate via the phonograph suddenly. Was it supposed to be a magical phonograph? Also, it’s a big coincidence that Alec was able to receive letters from Josie at the right time and place. There might be some other loopholes pertaining to the time element, but I didn’t give much through into it. It is, at the end of the day, a children’s fiction novel that should be read for entertainment value.

The characters are beautifully written with their own distinctive personalities. I was completely absorbed in the friendship between Josie and Alec, and the way they help each other. It was fun to read how one reacted to a phrase, music, books, or lingos they shared with each other. Emily, Cass and Danny also brought a spark of entertainment to the story. Mrs. Clifford is one of those characters you just love to hate. I pictured she would look and act just like Lady Tremaine (the evil stepmother from Cinderella), only more witch-like. There were some characters like Merritt and Mrs. Gubbins that I found fascinating and wished we had more details of.

Camille DeAngelis writes in a charming manner, and her strength is in how she writes her characters. I am interested in picking up her novel “Bones & All” as I have heard good reviews of that as well. Agnieszka Grochalska, the illustrator has also provided delightful illustrations for each chapter that adds a pleasant touch to the story.

In conclusion, “The Boy from Tomorrow” is a nice time travel book that I would definitely recommend to read. I give 4.5 out of 5 rating for this book.

Shadow Weaver by MarcyKate Connolly
Release: January 2nd 2018
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Source: Amazon

Shadow Weaver Synopsis:

The shadows that surround us aren’t always as they seem…

Emmeline has grown up with a gift. Since the time she was a baby she has been able to control shadows. And her only friend and companion is her own shadow, Dar. Disaster strikes when a noble family visits their home and offers to take Emmeline away and cure her of magic. Desperate not to lose her shadows, she turns to Dar who proposes a deal: Dar will change the noble’s mind, if Emmeline will help her become flesh as she once was. Emmeline agrees but the next morning the man in charge is in a coma and all that the witness saw was a long shadow with no one nearby to cast it. Scared to face punishment, Emmeline and Dar run away. With the noble’s guards on her trail, Emmeline’s only hope of clearing her name is to escape capture and perform the ritual that will set Dar free. But Emmeline’s not sure she can trust Dar anymore, and it’s hard to keep secrets from someone who can never leave your side. The first in a dark middle-grade fantasy duology, MarcyKate Connolly weaves a tale filled with shadows, danger, and magic that has the feel of a new classic.

Review:

I had high hopes about “Shadow Weaver”. From its cover and synopsis, it reminded me of other middle grade atmospheric thrillers like ‘Coraline’ and ‘Doll Bones’. However, once I finished reading it, I felt disappointed and wished it had been more exciting.

My main complaint about “Shadow Weaver” is how the story is slow and repetitive for the most part. This is one of those stories that has an engaging start, a boring middle, eventually leading to a gripping climax. The beginning sets a very nice haunting pace for what we can expect to follow as the plot thickens. It has all the ingredients for a good spooky novel, like magical people, devious shadows and a powerful villain. Some parts were just downright eerie, like when Emmeline meets Simone (who reminded me of the twins from ‘The Shining’). However, once the pace cooled down, and Emmeline meets Lucas and his family, the story starts to drag. We read how kind she feels his family is, versus how resentful Dar is in every other page. There were also parts that could have been cut out, like all the scenes with the Rodan family. They did not add anything to the plot, in my opinion, and could have just as well been avoided.

Coming to the positives, I enjoyed MarcyKate Connolly’s style of writing. It is simplistic and written in a very fairy tale like manner that any age group can enjoy. While I thought the book dragged in between, I commend the author on how she wrote the progression of Emmeline. Emmeline (I love that name!) is a character you can relate to and root for. We see her go from a weak, isolated girl relying on her shadow, to a confident girl who takes charge. The supporting characters, like Lucas and Miranda are also likeable. Kudos to Nicole Hower, the illustrator behind the beautiful artwork cover.

Even though this is the first in the series, it concludes in a satisfying manner with something to look forward to. I hope the next book in the series has a lot more action and adventure packed into it. I also hope to see more characters with special powers, and not just restricted to Emmeline and Lucas. Overall, this was a nice read, but I wish it has been better.

Release: April 17th 2018
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Source: Amazon
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N

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Secrets of Topsea Review:

Am I the only one who had mixed feelings about this book? The only term that comes to my mind for summing up this book is “meh.”

Don’t get me wrong. I love reading strange, bizarre books, mainly directed towards middle grade/YA that keep you wondering what will happen next. This book had so many odd story arcs that included mermaids, trolls, and other quirky things to make it a memorable read. 

However, the main problem I had with this book was there was no plot or consistency. It is just random events that happen to Davy and his friends. I feel like the story’s overall plot was for Davy to adjust and come to terms with being accepted at Topsea, so it would have made sense for the author to focus on his bizarre interactions with each of his friends. Instead, we get separate Talise stories looking at tide pools and Quincy’s stolen questions, which doesn’t have anything to do with Davy! 

I enjoyed some of these small story arcs that didn’t have anything to do with the main character, like when Finn meets Billy or when Finn gets stuck in the chewing gum wall. But again, these felt like fillers for the author to add on to cover for the weak plot.

However, the illustrations by Rachel Sanson are cute and whimsical and compliment the storylines. I also liked how each chapter begins or ends with snippets from the school newspaper or the survey Davy fills out.

Maybe in the follow-up, we would get more answers about what happened to the ice cream man and the Water Park as this is the first in the series. Overall, this was an average read that I would easily forget.

Release: January 16th 2018
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Lion Forge Comics
Source: Netgalley
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N, __

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Little Tails on The Farm Review:

Even though I am not a fan of children’s books, I pick one up purely for the illustrations once in a while. “Little Tails on the Farm” did not disappoint in this matter. 

The drawings by Federico Bertolucci are amazing!. The illustrator provides a beautiful contrast between the main story, shown in comic strip format. And the farm animals’ detailed illustrations complement the storyline. The color palettes used are so bright and vibrant that it captures the young ones’ attention reading it. Some of my favorite images in this book are of the peacock and the ladybugs. 

Frédéric Brémaud, the author, should also be complimented for writing such a fun and educational book. The main characters, Squizzo and Chipper, are a cute pair. And it was fun to see them interact and react to the various animals as they go for a stroll on the farm in search of milk. I liked this story because the duo decided not to focus on the typical farm animals like cows, pigs, horses, and chickens. But they also focused on other exotic and wild animals like the peacock and the ram. The author also includes a variety of fun facts about each animal at the end of the book, giving something for grownups. In addition to all this, this kind of book would give young readers a good start in reading graphic novels. Especially, the images are in a very contrasting manner that’s pleasing to the eye with big fonts.

It would be tough for anyone to dislike this book! Being a grown adult, I want to pick out all the previous books in the series even now and read through them all! Overall, I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would, and I am giving it five stars.

Anxiety is Really Strange by Steve Haines
Release: Janary 18th 2018
Format: PDF
Publisher: Singing Dragon
Source: NetGalley

A BIG Thank You to NetGalley and Singing Dragon for providing me a copy of “Anxiety is Really Strange” by Steve Haines in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fun and informative book. It gives a high level overview as to what anxiety is, the symptoms causing it, researches done in the area, followed by the methods to overcome and control it. All of these areas are described in a graphic novel manner with cute illustrations.

I consider myself as someone who gets highly anxious at times and tends to react rather than act during tough situations. Not my best trait, I admit, but this book really made me feel positive after finishing it. I found the whole section of nature vs nurture particularly fascinating. It is the age old question which we ask of ‘is someone born a hero or is it an attribute they acquire?’ The author has provided facts and listed experiments done by various researchers to support both sides, but I personally feel that our environment and other external factors adapt us to who we are.

Anyway, I digress. The main reason I liked this book was because it is told in a simple and concise manner with the information organized perfectly. I am not a researcher or a scientist who is going to take a 500+ page information book on anxiety and read about its cause and effect. Providing a “dummy” version of the same in a graphic novel format is a very creative way of sharing the same views to everyone.

Another reason I enjoyed the book was because it covers various forms of anxiety, such as the one that a person would face after encountering physical abuse, or someone who is stressed at home or in the workplace. The author also provides various pointers to overcome each of them specifically. Some of the notes are very simple yet effective, and one of my favorite ones is the below phrase:

I also loved the selection of color palette used for the visuals. They are not glaring to the eye, but at the same time make the messages stand out, and give the simple illustrations a vibrant spark.

The only reason I gave it 4 stars and not 5 is because at times it got too descriptive for me to understand, especially the part about existentialists (my new word for the day) and how they studied behavior during the Second World War. However, for the most part, it is useful for a layman like myself to learn about the symptoms of anxiety and how to overcome it.

I hope the author decides to release these kind of books for other symptoms such as depression, anger etc.